Bentsen, Johnson leading way for football Rams

Posted
Thursday, October 4, 2012 1:09 pm

Brenden Soares

Despite the many lumps taken so far in 2012 by the University of Rhode Island football team, the Rams can find comfort in that solid contributions are being made by native products, including two standouts who call Warwick home.Vets graduate Bob Bentsen is entrusted with the most difficult job of all on any football team: putting together a solid performance under center on a weekly basis.

Bentsen has yet to have a breakout day so far this season, but has managed to average nearly 125 yards through the air in the four defeats that the Rhody eleven have incurred.

In addition, he has been accurate. Bentsen possesses a completion percentage of 58.9. He has thrown two touchdowns and two interceptions.

On the other side of the ball, Doug Johnson (Toll Gate) has situated himself among the team’s leaders in tackles despite missing two games with injury. He has tallied 13 stops to date, good for a tie for ninth on the team.

Next up for URI’s gridders is the annual showdown with Brown, which is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. in Kingston.

Brown leads AIC

The Friday night lights were shining on Hendricken product Matt Brown back on Sept. 21 as he turned in an efficient performance for American International College in the Yellowjackets’ 42-0 rout of Pace.

The junior wide receiver helped make the school’s first-ever home football game played at night a memorable occasion by catching four passes for 70 yards, with two of those receptions going for touchdowns.

The first visit to the house came with 1:05 remaining in the first half and capped off a brief drive that took AIC all of 22 seconds to complete.

Brown later finished the game’s scoring in the third quarter by hauling in a 26-yard strike from Kevin Arduino, who finished the contest with three touchdowns from only nine pass attempts.

For the season, Brown leads the team with 14 receptions, while his 166 receiving yards places him second on the Jackets’ chart.

Former ’Canes playing well

Former Warwick Vets teammates Lindsey Garvey and Ashley Jamieson may have gone their separate ways, but despite the distance, a spirit of helping out their respective teams remains.

Garvey, who now suits up for Emmanuel College, leads the Saints in assists with six helpers, including setting up the winner in the 87th minute against Wentworth on Sept. 17.

Her contributions to the team have not been limited to providing assists; in Sunday’s contest against St. Joseph’s of Maine, she sparked a comeback from two goals down by heading in a corner kick in the 66th minute, which put Emmanuel on the path to an unlikely 3-2 overtime triumph.

Jamieson plies her trade closer to home at Salve Regina, but has been just as effective in her role as provider, as she paces the Seahawks with six assists of her own.

Unlike Garvey, who has notched three goals so far this season, Jamieson hasn’t been as prolific in front of goal, but her only scoring shot of the season thus far came in dramatic circumstances on Sept. 25. Jamieson’s 97th minute effort secured a 2-1 win against Bridgewater State that took the Salve eleven above the .500 mark for the season.

Tomaselli still scoring

Briana Tomaselli may have an entirely new set of teammates, but she still has an insatiable appetite for goals.

The former Pilgrim standout transferred to Mount Ida this fall from Newbury College, where she scored 40 goals in her first two seasons of intercollegiate competition.

Tomaselli didn’t take long to start finding the target for the Mustangs, notching a hat trick in a 7-1 rout of her former team on Sept. 6.

For an encore, she blasted a further five past Anna Maria five days later in a 9-1 conquest in which the AmCats were only able to suit up ten players.

Her marksmanship was subsequently rewarded with the Great Northeast Athletic Conference’s player of the week award for the week ending Sept. 16, in recognition of the performance against Anna Maria and a further pair scored against Bay Path on Sept. 15 She leads the team with 11 goals.